Neonatal effects of toluene on the locomotor behavioral development of the rat.

Rats were exposed to toluene twice a day for a period of 15 minutes on Days 2 through 32 of postnatal life. The subsequent effects upon swimming ability, escape latency from water, locomotor activity and physical development were evaluated. Maturation of swimming behavior and physical development were delayed about 3-4 days in experimental animals. Moreover, escape from water showed prolonged mean latencies until 24 postnatal days and the locomotor activity was increased during the 60 minutes following toluene exposure, compared with non-exposed littermate controls. The data of these experiments suggest that neonatal toluene exposure appears to be primarily interfering with the development of those cortical and brain stem structures underlying swimming and locomotor activities.